In a follow-up, and what I believe to be the same presentation that Elanor Profetto’s video is from a very strong and wonderful woman, Sylvia Mackey, “Mrs. 88″ gives a talk about brain injury. She also has intimate and troubling experience with what brain injury/disease can do as she took care of the great John Mackey in is twilight.

I’m not an athlete. But I am a single mom taking care of elderly parents. I’ve had repeat concussions, all from accidents over the last almost nine years. The first occurred 7/12/2005 at work when a coworker in an office threw a ball at another coworker standing behind me while I sat working at my desk. Instead of hitting the guy in the arm or shoulder he hit me on the left side of my head just above the ear causing a concussion and neck injury. It also created a secondary arachnoid cyst in the anterior aspect of my left temporal lobe causing mass effect. It took a year to find a doctor who would even tell me what my MRI scan image and report even meant. Of all things he was an ENT. It was almost two years after that when I found a skilled neurosurgeon that had a clue about my condition and its subsequent symptoms. The cyst was drained and excised and my symptoms resolved. Until it regrew within four months. I then had a second surgery to remove the cyst but that neurosurgeon was not as skilled and he ended up nicking a vein on my brain causing a “slight” hemorrhage and some brain damage in the temporal and frontal lobes. Thus I did not have as successful a recovery the second time around. And again the cyst returned in six months time, but this time a bit smaller. I continued to have symptoms as long as the cyst remained. Then on 8/27/12 my car was rear ended on the highway in front of our driveway at home while I was waiting for oncoming traffic to clear coming home from work. I had whiplash injuries to my neck, back, and brain. My doctor estimated that my car was hit at about 40 miles per hour considering the injuries it caused me, the driver reported that she took her foot off the brake as she thought the car behind her was not going to stop in time. So I did have some increased symptoms, though they didn’t start until about two months after the accident. I was not over those symptoms yet when on 11/11/13 I was walking to my car at work to leave for the day to go home when I slipped and fell on a patch of ice that I did not see, I assume “black ice”, on the sidewalk and I landed on my back in the parking lot between my car and an SUV with my left leg tucked under my back. I thus had whiplash injuries again to my neck, back, and brain. I also ended up with my hips out of alignment due to how I landed with my left leg under me. So now I am told this morning by my skilled first neurosurgeon that I have a cumulative brain injury effect and would not be a candidate for surgery right now to remove the cyst again. So now I wait and see how much healing will occur first before another surgery is attempted, unless my symptoms worsen. So these brain injuries don’t just occur to athletes with repeat injuries within short time spans. I never fully healed from my first concussion in 2005 as the cyst remained from it and the symptoms did not resolve because of it. I would like doctors of all stripes to be made aware of what concussions really are and how they change who people are in their personality, intellect, and physical abilities. I was told during cognitive rehab a few years ago that I went from very bright to normal. I can tell you I was not liking “normal”. And now with this last injury I don’t think I’m even at that level anymore. I was able to return to work in IT project management roles with the first three injuries, but not this last one. I tried to do so. And I exhausted myself. This is the one that one of my medical providers said is the “straw that broke the camel’s back”. Please help to inform all doctors of what the real story is on concussions, especially repeat concussions. So many doctors that I have seen didn’t have a clue of the impacts to a person. Healthwise and financially it has been a nightmare. And if anyone can point me in the direction of finding ways to help my brain to heal, please let me know. I’m the main caregiver and breadwinner in my family. I’m not sure my family can cope if this devastates me now. I’m the glue in our family as they’ve all had many struggles of their own with health issues over the years and even today. Thank you for taking the time to read through my comment of my own personal experience with concussions.

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